What I Read in August & September of 2024

Happy Q4, friends! I took a little break in August but had to come back and keep up with my book posts (I’m in my fifth[!) year of doing it monthly). So… here are eight books I read in the month of August plus five books I read in September.

A RIVER ENCHANTED by Rebecca Ross

A bard is called home to the island he grew up in, and what was supposed to be a short stay turns into a longer, perhaps a permanent return as the island may need him and his ability to call the spirits with his music. I’ve been wanting to read more fantasy, and I saw that A River Enchanted was nominated for Goodreads Best Fantasy award. After reading it, I understand why (I’m currently waiting on my library hold for its sequel, which you will notice is a pattern for me as of recent).

YOU DESERVE GOOD GELATO by Kacie Ross

Kacie Ross is an American who lives in Italy with her now fiancé, and some of her TikTok videos have come across my FYP page so I was mildly intrigued by her book You Deserve Good Gelato. It was exactly what I expected (in a good way)–a personal story with doses of vulnerability and inspiration. Kacie’s narration for the audiobook is easy-to-listen as well.

THE SPIRIT CATCHES YOU AND YOU FALL DOWN by Anne Fadiman

Despite it being an older text (published in 1997), I took a lot away from The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down. The baby on the cover of the book is Lia Lee, and Anne Fadiman traces the Lee family’s story from before they came to America and throughout Lia’s many, many trips to the hospital for her epilepsy. In addition to the Lee family, Fadiman interviews other Hmong immigrants, including those who take on “leading” the pockets of Hmong communities, the healthcare workers who’ve interacted with Hmong peoples, and the Westerners who knew the Hmong throughout the war years.

Culmination of years of gaining trust from (some of) the Hmong community, this medical anthropology provides lots of context and explanations: the history and traditions of Hmong people, how they were involved in CIA’s “Secret War” which brought many of them to the US, and how the cultural differences between Hmong people and the West result in misunderstandings, conflicts, and sometimes tragedies.

갈아 만든 천국 (Heaven Made by Grinding) by 심너울(Shim Neoul)

갈아 만든 천국 (Heaven Made by Grinding [it’s a literal/awkward translation of the title by yours truly) is set in an alternative universe where people are born with magical power (마력). It’s not an equal distribution though and people are scored based on how much magic they’re born with, which is expected to be an indicator of how successful they will be regardless of the career path they choose. 갈아 만든 천국 follows a handful of characters at different timepoints, and all of their stories connect in some way. This was one of the newer Korean books I ordered directly from Korea courtesy of my brother, which means it’s not translated to English yet but I have no doubt it will be!

THE TRUTH ACCORDING TO EMBER by Danica Nava

I go through phases with a lot of things, and that includes the whole genre of romance. I hadn’t read or listened to a romance book in a while, and The Truth According to Ember filled my cup nicely. Ember, a Chickasaw woman who has been frustrated with the job search, decides to change a couple of things on her resume and lands her dream job. At the company is another Native employee named Danuwoa aka the hot IT guy. They become friends and maybe more but maybe not?! The Truth According to Ember is a bit of a rollercoaster. There were multiple times where I was like “why, Ember, why???” but what can I say? She’s only human!!!

PARABLE OF THE SOWER by Octavia E. Butler

It only felt fitting to read Parable of the Sower in 2024 (as this dystopian novel originally published in 1993 begins with a journal entry dated July 20th, 2024). The world in which Lauren Olamina lives with her family is depressing: the earth is severely affected by the climate change, there is so much separation and isolation, and everyone is fending for themselves and the very, very small community they can trust and keep. Though today’s world isn’t exactly the same as the one described by Butler in Parable of the Sower, a lot of the elements in the book reminded me of the hopelessness and the impending doom many of us have learned to live with. My library hold for the sequel Parable of the Talents is ready for pickup, so I’ll be starting that next!

THE OTHER AMERICANS by Laila Lalami

The Other Americans opens with the death of a Moroccan immigrant Driss who was hit by a car after a closing shift at his diner. In the chapters following, we meet his wife and two daughters. Then we meet more members of the community who are connected to Driss’s death or the investigation of it in some way, and the mystery surrounding Driss’s death begins to unfold. In The Other Americans, Lalami writes about the complicated love and secrets within families, casual racism, and love.

FOUR EIDS AND A FUNERAL by Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé & Adiba Jaigirdar

When I learned the author of Ace of Spades and Where the Sleeping Girls Lie and the author of Hani and Ishu’s Guide to Fake Dating were writing a book together, it was a no-brainer for me to put it on my TBR! As suggested by the title, ex-best friends Said and Tiwa are brought together by a funeral, that of their favorite librarian Ms. Barnes. The funeral is shortly followed by a community tragedy and Eid, which further brings Said and Tiwa together as they work together to figure out a way to save the Islamic Center. Though it is technically categorized as a romance, I would first classify it as a coming-of-age story. There is so much growth and character development, and honesty not too much romance, even for YA.

RAW DOG: THE NAKED TRUTH ABOUT HOT DOGS by Jamie Loftus

I learned about Raw Dog thanks to a TikTok video (and thankful I am)! Hot dogs are one of my favorite food groups so I was intrigued by this book all about hot dogs. I will say this book is not entirely about hot dogs. Yes, Jamie Loftus did go on a road trip eating hot dogs throughout the continental US (aka her hot dog summer) but listening to this book, I almost felt like she talked about a lot of topics tangentially related (i.e. the meat industry, eating competitions, etc.) while using hot dogs as a backdrop or a segue. It ended up being a little bit different than I expected but not necessarily in a bad way.

THIS COULD BE US by Kennedy Ryan

If you’ve read Before I Let go, This Could Be Us is the story of Soledad, one of Yasmen’s best friends. Soledad’s seemingly perfect life turns upside down one day when the FBI shows up at her door. The next months are filled with new challenges as she figures out how to support her three girls and who she is on her own. Throughout all of this chaos, there is a man with an interesting context(?). While This Could Be Us is only my second time reading Kennedy Ryan’s writing, it followed the pattern of Ryan carefully balancing romance and hard topics. I can’t wait to read Hendrix’s story!

모던 테일 (MODERN TALE)

The short stories in 모던 테일 (MODERN TALE) are loose interpretations of classic Korean tales (고전), highlighting and criticizing the issues in contemporary society. Because they are all by a different author, the voice and storytelling is distinct in each story, and I appreciated each writer’s perspective.

WHEN NO ONE IS WATCHING by Alyssa Cole

This was recommended to me by a friend IRL who hasn’t actually read it yet haha. His friend read it and declared When No One is Watching as their favorite/best book of all time, and that’s all it took to convince me! I will say the way I went into and came out of reading this book reminded me of how I felt with Ace of Spades. Yes, it is technically a thriller but it’s just not an accurate description.When No One Is Watching is much more: it calls out micro-aggressions, it makes you confront the gentrification happening in your neighborhood, it makes you question how big and expansive the “system” is. While it ended up not being my new favorite book ever, it is so uniquely interesting. Definitely worth a read (or an audiobook listen which is what I did)!

THE POPPY WAR by R. F. Kuang

2024 has been a year of R. F. Kuang for me, having read Babel in February and Yellowface in May and now finally starting the Poppy War trilogy after six years (marked it as want to read on July 25, 2018 to be exact)! As with Babel, R. F. Kuang intertwines history and fantasy in The Poppy War: she presents events from 20th century China in the world of Nikara and Mugen; the source of magic in the Poppy War series is the gods themselves who release their powers through shamans.

I thoroughly enjoyed The Poppy War series (currently waiting on my library hold on the second book in the series) but I know there are some polarizing opinions out there. If you’re not familiar with the history represented in this book, I recommend doing a bit of research before committing to reading this one.

P.S. I’m currently listening to The Perfectionist’s Guide to Losing Control by Katherine Morgan Schafler.